Saturday, July 27, 2013

The artwork screams Bitchor Lita Ford, but everything else - from the late night guitar to the sultry vocals - screams of a Prince protege circa 1985. It's been a minute since we heard from Friends, and "The Way" is miles from where we last left them, but apparently this is a pace car single for a sophomore album that's so far from being completed that all we know is it should be out sometime this year.

Bumbaclot1. A cloth or rag used to wipe ones anal region. However, most Jamaicans use it as a substitute for the word f*ck to express anger or surprise. Bumbaclot! Dem tek mi rolex and mi new links!!2. The acme of Jamaican swearing, translates literally as "arsewipe". Its real meaning is more like a slow, surprised "motherf****r"3. A cloth or rag used as a tampon, etc. Gross, but likely more accurate. Wha' dee Bum-Bah-CLOT! Cum nah, get dee rass off me car?

Maybe you can't judge a book by its cover, but goddamn if that shirt doesn't say it all. "Elevate" is meant to be consumed with mai thai in hand on a pristine beach with colorful flora highlighting a jungle backdrop. St. Lucia keeps it strictly 80's, eschewing the murky production that would otherwise pigeonhole his work in the chillwave genre. This is a guy who started at Human League and didn't bother digging any further than Thompson Twins, and sometimes that's all you need.

Joanna Gruesome are a Welsh band that do a good job of transcribing 90s Pacific NW punk and throwing in a dash of East Coast alt rock to boot. According the (probably apocryphal) press release, the Cardiff quintet met during anger management therapy. Do they even have such a thing as rage in Wales? Didn't think so.

First of all, as the band themselves are quick to point out, this is not an incarnation of dueling Black Flag reunions. Granted, The Flag are of recent vintage, but jefe Ted McGrath could never have guessed when he christened his new project that the seminal punk band would be reuniting in conflicting incarnations, with neither of them boasting any sign of Henry Rollins. If you followed that Soundcloud link above you'll appreciate the fact that McGrath cops to a Suicide influence, what with that rolling percussion loop, but there remains an indiscernable quality to "Alpha 60 Punch Out" that's at once familiar yet not so easily identifiable.

Nope, not a Traffic cover, "Mister Fantasy" leans heavily on the "punk" end of the post-punk conundrum, vocals straight out of 1977 Sheffield with icy, cavernous production more redolent of 1979 Manchester. Never mind that Ex-Cult are straight out of Memphis, when you're recreating a long lost era a well-stocked MP3 collection is more important than the influence of a local scene anyway.

Well well, Mr. Bon Iver himself takes a little time off from being Kanye's cracker barrel muse and throws a little love elsewhere, this time popping up as a back up vocalist on Poliça's fantastic new single, "Tiff". Honestly I'm guessing Justin Vernon's contribution took him all of five minutes to lay down, so let's reserve most of the credit for Channy Leaneagh's 90s chanteuse vocals atop Ryan Olson's synthpop-meets-cloud rap production.